GenVibe - Community for Pontiac Vibe Enthusiasts

I bought my Vibe thinking it was a Toyota clone aside from the GM paint and the radio - two things that I didn't necessarily care about them screwing up. And, apparently they have done a good job messing up both tasks. My clear coat is chipped off in plenty of areas (I really don't care that much though, just want good transportation).

I was so bummed to find out this weekend that we don't have Denso stuff for our air conditioning system. How good is GM's Delphi AC - reliability wise?

just finished repainting vibe, it is very thin factory clear coat, few passes with sand paper and it is gone.

Paint is actually Toyota One stage. Saves cash. I need a respray, along with new fender cladding, and rear cladding guard. The guys who fixed my car after its wreck prior to my ownership used even worse paint on it.

There are two things I for sure know about GM reliability. Their 3.6V6 paired with a GM automatic will run longer than the sun, and GM AC (not to be confused with GMAC) isn't failure prone. But parts wear, and a car is a wear item. All first gen Vibes are getting up there in age, so things that are actually pretty reliable will eventually fail.

Aside from not-so-great performance, the A/C is alright. IMHO I think they under-engineered the system, it doesn't seem to handle the volume it has to cool very well.

Biggest problem seems to be the recirc door motor, if yours hasn't gone bad yet just wait -- it will!

The '03 I used to have chewed up A/C compressors for some reason... Started growling, so the dealer replaced the compressor. Lather, rinse, repeat. I think I was on #4 when I got rid of it. Seems to be an isolated incident though. My wife's '03's AC still works fine 10 years later with only the recirc door motor replaced of course.

For the paint, not so much GM... It was painted to Toyota standards using Toyota painting processes at NUMMI. And yes it was terrible.

Is the recirc door motor unique to the Vibe? I thought it was also used in other Toyota models. e.g. the Corolla? My recollection is that the basic heating/ac controls look identical in the Vibe, other Toyota models, and even the Scion's.

ColonelPanic wrote:Aside from not-so-great performance, the A/C is alright. IMHO I think they under-engineered the system, it doesn't seem to handle the volume it has to cool very well.

Biggest problem seems to be the recirc door motor, if yours hasn't gone bad yet just wait -- it will!

The '03 I used to have chewed up A/C compressors for some reason... Started growling, so the dealer replaced the compressor. Lather, rinse, repeat. I think I was on #4 when I got rid of it. Seems to be an isolated incident though. My wife's '03's AC still works fine 10 years later with only the recirc door motor replaced of course.

For the paint, not so much GM... It was painted to Toyota standards using Toyota painting processes at NUMMI. And yes it was terrible.

I drove a '95 Honda Accord for 9 years with no AC in Tennessee heat. I am just happy if I have working AC here, underpowered or not. At least I'm moving up in the world with vehicles Well I'm really glad to hear that GM does a decent job of their AC systems reliability. I looked up my vibe vs. the matrix climate category rating on consumer reports last night: the vibe has a half red circle and the matrix got a full red circle. Really not too bad. Hopefully it will last me a few years through graduate school before I have to replace the compressor or clutch, which I gladly will because I want to keep this car for a while.

I will go ahead and be reading about the recirc door motor so I'm prepared when the time comes.

Interesting fact that the vibe is Toyota paint. I wouldn't have thought that it was theirs considering my understanding that the sheet metal it's painted on is GM.

Thanks for all your help, I was starting to get worried I had rushed into this car.... but I think I still made a good choice.

jake75 wrote:Is the recirc door motor unique to the Vibe? I thought it was also used in other Toyota models. e.g. the Corolla? My recollection is that the basic heating/ac controls look identical in the Vibe, other Toyota models, and even the Scion's.

The controls are the same but the HVAC insides in the dash are GM, at least on the '03-'08 Vibes. (which is why the Matrix filters do not work.) The recirc door motor doesn't seem to be used on any Toyotas. I noticed when buying it, the only other vehicle it interchanges with are the Colorado/Canyon trucks.

The '09-10 do indeed share the same exact HVAC controls with many of other Toyota/Scion models. Not sure if the guts are the same.

ThePatriot, you made a fine choice. They're good cars.

ThePatriot wrote:

ColonelPanic wrote: For the paint, not so much GM... It was painted to Toyota standards using Toyota painting processes at NUMMI. And yes it was terrible.

Interesting fact that the vibe is Toyota paint. I wouldn't have thought that it was theirs considering my understanding that the sheet metal it's painted on is GM.

Probably 2/3 of the production at the NUMMI plan, was Toyota products, so that is probably why it is a Toyota paint process, not a GM one. But I'll bet the fact they were painted in CA had something to do with the process. They probably have different environmental requirements on paint.